What helped her soar after Dancing With the Stars? Coming to terms with her past and ditching the compulsion to be perfect. Get an exclusive sneak peak at our cover interview right here.

On how her current relationship differs from the one with Ryan Seacrest

On how her current relationship differs from the one with Ryan Seacrest

“Every relationship, there was nothing wrong or bad, but there was nothing right. I had one foot out because I didn’t want to get hurt. And I didn’t say what was on my mind because I didn’t want to ruffle any feathers. I needed to be perfect. But now I’m not holding anything back, because I’d rather get my heart broken than never know what it is to be completely, madly in love. If I had been this open in my last relationship, who knows?”

On what changed her outlook on relationships

On what changed her outlook on relationships

“I had this epiphany when my family went to a six-day seminar [last November] about creating your own destiny. I was not into it at first, but I learned so much about myself and why my relationships didn’t work that by the end I was on a high. I was seeing a couple people, but immediately [pretends to text guys], ‘You are nice, but this is going nowhere.’ The next day my Curve costar introduced [Brooks and me]. It couldn’t have been a better time. We’ve been open and honest from day one.”